Three Harrison men charged with DWI in separate incidents, police say

Police said the incidents all occurred near Harrison Avenue this weekend. Google Maps

HARRISON – It was a busy weekend for township cops, who in a roughly 24-hour period starting early Saturday arrested three men for drunk driving in a two-block radius.

The three men, all from Harrison, had blood alcohol levels at or over twice the legal limit, according to police.

The first man, Cesar Ward, 25, of Harrison, told cops at about 3 a.m. Saturday that he had had a few beers and some Hennessy before heading home and striking a parked vehicle at Frank E. Rodgers Boulevard and Harrison Avenue, according to police.

Ward, driving a Chevy Equinox, called police after he struck the parked Subaru, cops said. Police found a cell phone on the passenger’s seat of the Chevy, and Ward told cops he had been on the phone prior to the accident, according to police.

Ward was placed under arrest and charged with DWI, reckless driving and operating a motor vehicle while using a cell phone, police said. He was found to have a blood alcohol level of .16, police said.

The second arrest came at 1:20 a.m. on Sunday, when police say they saw a Nissan Altima weaving on Cleveland Avenue and stopped it on Harrison Avenue near 3rd Street. The driver, Diego Alfredo Gonzalez, 25, of Harrison, told cops he had had four beers and was on his way home, according to police.

Police say Gonzalez was unsteady on his feet and failed field sobriety tests, police said. He was charged with DWI and later found to have a blood alcohol level of .16, police said.

Two hours later, police were dispatched to 232 Harrison Ave. on a report of a hit and run involving three vehicles, police said.

Witnesses told police that a GMC Envoy with heavy front end damage drove away from the scene heading west on Harrison Avenue, police said.